Unlawful hunters in Cyprus have killed tons of of hundreds of birds this season, that are then served as delicacies in eating places, in line with conservation teams.
On Wednesday, Britain’s Royal Society for the Safety of Birds (RSPB), BirdLife Cyprus, and the Committee Towards Chicken Slaughter (CABS) reported that not less than 435,000 birds, together with blackcaps and warblers, have been killed by hunters in autumn 2023.
This quantity is roughly 90,000 increased than the figures from autumn 2022.
The conservation teams described unlawful fowl trapping as a demand-driven wildlife crime, emphasizing that the commerce of trapped birds in lawbreaking eating places is a significant financial incentive for hunters.
The report discovered that not less than 157 fowl species, akin to owls, kestrels, and cuckoos, have been randomly trapped. The report highlighted that 90 of those species are acknowledged as conservation precedence species below the EU Birds Directive.
Legal organizations use strategies like mist nets or glue sticks to seize the birds. Birds caught on glue sticks should be forcibly eliminated by hand earlier than being bought to eating places.
BirdLife Cyprus famous a rise in the usage of glue strategies following a discount in fines for such offenses.